Penn charity gives NY spots for Haiti race winners

(AP) Haiti has held a rare half-marathon with the participation of Hollywood actor Sean Penn's charity, which has set aside spots to send the top five finishers to the ING New York City Marathon on Nov. 3.

Three men and two women will receive support from Penn's J/P Haitian Relief Organization, pending approval of the results from the Haitian Amateur Athletics Federation.

The decision to sponsor the runners stems in part from an Associated Press story that featured a Haitian distance runner who overcame obstacles running through Port-au-Prince three years after the 2010 earthquake. Race organizers say that runner, Astrel Clovis, finished first with a time of 1:19 out of more than a hundred registered runners.